BY PRINCELY ONYENWE,IMO
The All Progressive Congress (APC), has expressed concern over alleged inability of Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State to reconstitute cabinet since after four months of dissolution.
9NEWS RECALLS that Abia State Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu had in January, 2021 approved the immediate dissolution of the State Executive Council.
The approval was contained in a press release issued by Governor Ikpeazu’s Chief Press Secretary, Onyebuchi Ememanka, in Umuahia, the state capital.
The Governor however reinstated his Commissioner of Information, Chief John Okiyi Kalu Health counterpart, Dr. Joe Osuji, the Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice, Uche Ihediuwa and the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Barrister Chris Ezem.
Ikpeazu further ordered all those affected by the dissolution to hand over all government property in their possession as well their handover notes to their respective permanent secretaries.
But, reacting over delay in constituting his cabinet, the All Progressive Congress (APC), in a release made available to the press by its Publicity Secretary in Abia State, Comrade Benedict Godson, on Tuesday, reminded Governor Ikpeazu that Abia is not hamlet he can administer as he feel, positing that the Abia helmsman had continued to run the state without commissioners which it further claimed, has crippled all facets of governance in the God’s Own State.
According to the Abia APC, as a Governor, he has right to remove any of his employees, but courtesy demands that he administer Abia as a state not a social club where he owes nobody any explanations.
The APC release partly stated, “As Nigerian citizens, as Abians, as a party and as humans, we want to use this medium to remind Gov Okezie Ikpeazu that it is now four months since he started running Abia affairs without Commissioners.
“Everyone in Nigeria is aware that Gov Ikpeazu, dissolved Abia State Executive Council in January, retaining only the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Commissioner for Information and the Commissioner for Health.
“This decision of the Governor to dissolve the Executive Council retaining only 3 Commissioners was wildly reported. It actually means that about 23 Commissioners were removed making such positions vacant since January 2021.
“How can this be? Majority of them are meant to execute all what’s approved for their ministries in the 2021 Budget. They made inputs on how those ministries will be run this year, why are we derailing from how government should operate?
“The most embarrassing of all these drama is that the Governor still goes about referring to some of the people he never announced that he retained as Commissioners.
“We have heard him of recent talking about Commissioners for this and that especially for works when it was obvious that he never announced their reinstatement.
“This Press Statement is meant to ask Gov Ikpeazu to tell Abians what kind of shaddow Commissioners he’s using in Abia. It is also meant to remind him that Abia is not a hamlet he can administer as he feels.
“If the previous Commissioners are people of questionable characters, are there no other qualified Abians you can replace them with?
“Why is Gov Ikpeazu finding it difficult to replace them? What’s holding him? Is 4 months not enough? Is there something happening behind that Abians need to know? Gov Ikpeazu please tell us?
9News Nigeria (Owerri)
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